MANNY PACQUIAO LOS ANGELES MEDIA DAY (PHOTOS / VIDEO)
By Ed de la Vega, DDS PhilBoxing.com Thu, 31 Mar 2016
Bob Arum and his Top Rank Promotions held the traditional ?media day? for Manny Pacquiao at the Wildcard Gym early Wednesday afternoon. The event is designed to hype up the fight and drive up the bottom line for the promotions called Pacquiao-Bradley III.
But alas, unlike the previous ones held to generate support and interest for fights wherein Pacquiao is involved, this one was barely a humdinger.
First, gone are the huge hordes of fans that come to these kinds of events knowing that as non-accredited media folks, they don?t have a prayer to be admitted to the gym. But they may get a quick ego-boasting glimpse at the 8-time world champion or perhaps a precious autograph.
Second, the usual big name media people are nowhere to be seen. Yes there were more than a handful of the eager-beavers present but they are not the same huge mainstream folks that usually crowd the Pacquiao media day in the past. ?Mukhang wala yun mga big time ngayon, one Pinoy pundit was heard to say (Looks like the big time media folks are not around).
Perhaps, the sour taste left by the debacle called Mayweather-Pacquiao still lingers in the psyche of everyone, media people included. That is why, the big name entities did not bother to send their folks to cover the event.
But it could also be because in the minds of everyone there is nothing new and what else could be interesting in a third fight involving the two gladiators? Many believe that Pacquiao beat Tim Bradley twice already so there is nothing else to prove by a third fight.
But be that as it may, the media day still went on as scheduled. Pacquiao was still the same old jolly good fellow that feeds off the enthusiasm of the crowd. He clearly demonstrated that he still packs the horse-kick strength of his hooks. The thundering thuds when he hits the mitts held by Freddie Roach can be heard clear across the Wildcard Gym parking lot. And the speed if ever, barely diminished. His conditioning is apparently spot-on; the six-pack abs and the gastrocnemius were a sight to see!
As usual he went about the customary romp around the ring answering the same questions he heard several times over the past decade. What else can the media ask that has not been addressed before.
Word is there are still plenty of tickets to be had. But that does not seem to bother Bob Arum a bit. After all the old man has gone through thick and thin in his many past promotions and reports about slow tickets sales is nothing new to him. He knows that Manny Pacquiao will still bring in the folks that will occupy every seat at the MGM. ?Pactards? as they call them never failed Manny before. They will come, including those who would only come when they get free tickets!
An observation that many noticed was the fact that Manny was still wearing Nike shoes. But that is really not such a big deal. As his assistant trainer, Roger Fernandez stated - ?He will use what ever brand of shoes he feels comfortable with. He does not care about endorsements and the money. He wants to be comfortable so he can come up with a fight that is expected of him. No excuses!?
